MADRID AND THE DEVIL'S COMEBACK

By Uwe Siemon-Netto

The March 11, 2004 terrorist bombings in Madrid—killing 198, injuring 1,400—prompted theologians to reconsider the reality of the devil as a personal, active force.

For decades, Satan had been depersonalized: reduced to metaphor, shadow, or social evil.

But as one pastor noted: "The devil showed yesterday in Spain. How else explain such random evil?"

Others observe a cultural shift:

People are no longer satisfied with purely secular explanations of evil.

They seek religious language to name what they witness.

Satan, "the Prince of this World," disguises himself as Lucifer—the bearer of light. His allure is chillingly evident in history: Hitler, Stalin, genocidal dictators who persuaded ordinary people to commit unspeakable acts.

The Apostle Paul's warning in Ephesians 6:12 rings anew: "We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against… the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."

Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ—with its androgynous, luminous Satan taunting Jesus—resonated deeply because it re-embodied evil.

"The devil as a person is once again becoming a high probability for the once-doubting public."